Brian Larter Photography » General

Case of the Mondays!

Karen Murdock — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 13:00:45 +0000

I got up this morning and (as usual) all I could think was “bummer another week full of work and rushing around” when I mentioned this to a friend I was very quickly corrected…“beginnings are always beautiful” she said to me and you know what? She is right.

If we never set out to do anything we would live very very boring lives! Each week, like each day is just a new adventure and the outlook we take on it will have an impact on how each journey starts and progresses.

When I woke up it was a sunny day, I had food, drink, shelter and a wonderful person at my side. What right do I have to have a case of the Mondays? To everyone out there who is where I was this morning…pull yourselves together and get your day back on track your outlook is always bright if you keep a spring in your step. One good day leads to two and two good days leads to a good week…

Happy Monday everyone! This week is going to be wonderful!

Out with the old, in with the new! {Halifax, Nova Scotia}

Brian Larter — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 17:34:45 +0000

2009 was a crazy year for Karen and I. We pretty much started our photography business together shooting weddings. It was a roller coaster of ups and downs, fun times and slaving away to make it all work. Over all we are happy to report it was a rip roaring success! Bring on 2010 baby!

As the first post of many for 2010 I thought it would be a good idea to show off some of our proudest photos from the past year, this is far from all of them. This is just a taste of what is to come. I’m excited to get 2010 started!

Cans for Comments!

Brian Larter — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:39:56 +0000

Over the past month of November I was suppose to take part in a fundraiser for Feed NS by taking portraits at the local mall. Sadly things didn’t work out and the event fell through. I wondered what I could do to help. Well I didn’t have a lot of time t do the portraits on my own but still wanted to help in some way.So I came up with comments for Cans! Actually I lie, someone else came up with the idea, but they live far away so it doesn’t matter!

So how does it work? I know how many comments my little blog here on the internet has. So for every comment left between today and a week from today I will donate one can of food for Feed NS. Doesn’t that sound fun? So leave a comment on any blog post here on the blog and I will tally up the numbers next week.

Woohoo!

In between phases

Brian Larter — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:23:08 +0000

Every photographer, freelancer and anyone self employed has their ups and downs when it comes to career. Photographers often start out as artists wanting to create or capture something they think is important to document. Eventually though their original intent changes and reality sets in? they need to quickly learn business, marketing and a variety of government paperwork BS that they often have no interest in. Their work place changes and things in general become diluted. Their original vision is lost…

Things become overwhelming sometimes, as you try to deal with terra bytes of data, clients with demands, crazy business ideas and trying to keep everyone happy. Have you ever tried to keep a hard drive happy? They are very moody sometimes? You just need to step back and take a look at what you have created. The photos you have taken, the documentation you have made of history and the life you are living.

When meeting with a client this morning over coffee we got to talking about an old job we use to share, we where both younger, working in retail and in all honesty, hating it. We enjoyed the people we worked with but not the job it’s self. We both where working for someone else, restrained by working hours and had little to no freedom. This was life…

When I moved on with my career and into photography I had the typical vision of creating and making people happy. Obviously life set in and I realized quickly I needed to make a living at this or go back to flipping burgers. And even more obviously I didn’t want that to happen, so I began to learn everything I could about the business side of my career.

Things have turned out well of course because I am still doing what I love. I have the freedom of working for my self. I can go for a coffee when ever I like. I can meet clients where ever I like and I don’t need to answer to anyone. Of course I need to work with others, make money to live my life and pay the bills and cater to clients every day. But I’ve never been happier in my life doing that now then I have ever been. My clients are fantastic and I get to meet new people every day.

I don’t think I would change a thing.

I’m on an island and can’t get off!

Brian Larter — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 12:57:30 +0000

So I am here home on the Island until Monday, shooting a wedding with a good friend Rob MacAusland. Should be a blast. Things as expected have changed, some for the better, some for the not so great. You can’t expect a place to stay stuck in time though, or can you?

I was talking with a friend last night about this. Charlottetown had it’s quaintness going for it. The fact that it was stuck in time made it a little special, special enough that you would want to come here and visit for vacation.

Now it’s still a great place to come, don’t get me wrong. But it’s just not the same any more. Things are too much like how they are in any of the larger cities. There isn’t anything that makes it special any more…Well, at least Bubbas is still there.

Look ma! I’m famous!

Brian Larter — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 14:30:52 +0000

This month I am featured in Halifax’s very own Faces Magazine. It’s a series of interviews done with local photographers around the HRM on their style and what they enjoy to shoot. nothing overly fancy but I thought I would share anyway. And you get to see my big ugly mug as well.

Check out faces magazine if your around town

I got me one of them there edumecasions!

Brian Larter — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:55:06 +0000

So after two years of hard strenuous back breaking labour I am know a professional photographer! And I even have a piece of paper and a glass mug that proves it! Congratulations to all my fellow classmates, we use to be friends, but now we are hard bitten enemies on the battle field of business! Or something like that.

Anyway Congrats!

PS: Thanks Renee’s mom or Andrew for the fabulous photo!

Working in the wild

Brian Larter — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:39:46 +0000

One of my favorite things about being a freelance photographer is the flexibility concerning work. the only boss I need to answer to is my self (and significant other when I become too lazy). This gives me absolute power over my working habits and environment. Personally I run a studio in the downtown core of the city I live in. My studio is fantastic and a place I am very comfortable in. The only draw back is it becomes a lonely place if I am the only one around. As an artist and commercial photographer I find I get a lot of my inspiration from the people around me, so being alone in a large studio is rarely productive.

I personally enjoy doing my work in a coffee shop or park, where people are mingling or wandering back and forth. I feel the distractions of coffee cups clanging and children screaming is more then welcoming as the gears inside my head churn out idea after idea. I redesigned my entire website in a coffee shop and often think of new projects in the same place.

Now obviously the public is not the best place for everyone to work and be productive, everyone just needs to find their own place. I have several friends who need a quiet room away from everyone else to feel the inspirational vibe flow through them.